The pipeline deal announced late last month is a major coup for CIRI and its shareholders. CIRI has been in the enviable position of having a number of its assets mature (such as partnerships with VoiceStream) and having a fair bit of cash on hand. While a number of investment opportunities have come before the CIRI Board, none of them, in my view, have been as promising as this one.

Throughout the history of CIRI various individuals have called for large cash distributions to shareholders or for large increases in shareholder dividends. These efforts amount, in essence, to calls for partial liquidation of the company. While liquidating the company is always an option of shareholders, we can be thankful that the majority of shareholders has traditionally supported a Board which takes a long-term view of investing for the future.

No doubt you will continue to hear calls for liquidating dividends from various individuals. But investing in quality investments, having the patience to allow them to mature, and reinvesting the resulting funds for future growth has allowed CIRI to become a corporation that is a force not only in Alaska, but in the United States. Make no mistake about it, we love to declare large dividends – but more than that, we love seeing our assets mature to secure the future growth of the company for its shareholders. So when someone calls for a liquidating dividend, ask if they have a real plan for investment or are they merely being a Monday- morning quarterback?

Examples in CIRI’s history of attempted liquidations abound – an example being the calls by some for distribution of all proceeds after we sold our interests in television and radio. Had shareholders voted to liquidate those assets and return that money directly to shareholders, CIRI might not have had the funds to invest the over $100 million necessary for our investment in the VoiceStream partnerships, a transaction which led to the largest tax-free dividend in history from a Native regional corporation.

CIRI now has a number of investments which over the coming years will mature. The excitement we have over the gas pipeline deal is that we believe it has the potential, not only to provide a stable source of revenue for years to come, but also the potential to positively impact CIRI in the near-term in the form of additional work for our construction companies and for our shareholders, and in the long-term, in the form of recurring revenue.

Thank you for your patience while we have searched for investments that are worthy of CIRI’s attention. Your Board of Directors will continue to manage our assets for the future growth of the company, and for the future generations of our shareholders, while attempting to maintain dividends at their current, high level.